Inklingo
← Dictionary

gustar

goos-TAR/ɡusˈtaɾ/

to like, to be pleasing to

Also: to enjoy
VerbA1regular ar
A smiling child holds a bright red apple, showing clear enjoyment and preference for the fruit.
infinitivegustar
gerundgustando
past Participlegustado

📝 In Action

Me gusta mucho el chocolate.

A1

I really like chocolate. (Literally: Chocolate is very pleasing to me.)

Nos gustan las películas de acción.

A1

We like action movies. (The verb 'gustan' is plural because 'películas' is plural.)

¿Te gusta viajar a otros países?

A2

Do you like traveling to other countries?

Word Connections

Synonyms

Antonyms

Common Collocations

  • Me da gusto – It makes me happy
  • ¡Qué gusto! – How nice! / What a pleasure!

to taste, to appeal to

VerbB1regular ar
A close-up of a person sampling a small amount of brightly colored jam from a tiny spoon, focusing on the sensory act of tasting.

📝 In Action

El chef quería gustar el plato a los comensales.

B1

The chef wanted the dish to appeal to the diners.

No pude gustar el vino antes de comprarlo.

B2

I couldn't taste the wine before buying it.

Word Connections

Synonyms

to like each other, to be attractive

VerbB2pronominal (gustarse) ar
Two young children, a boy and a girl, standing close together and smiling warmly at each other, indicating mutual affection.

📝 In Action

Ellos se gustan desde hace meses, pero nadie se lo dice.

B2

They have liked each other for months, but no one tells them.

Cuando uno se gusta, irradia confianza.

C1

When one likes oneself (is confident), one radiates confidence.

Word Connections

Synonyms

  • atraerse (to attract each other)

🔄 Conjugations

indicative

present

él/ella/ustedgusta
yogusto
túgustas
ellos/ellas/ustedesgustan
nosotrosgustamos
vosotrosgustáis

imperfect

él/ella/ustedgustaba
yogustaba
túgustabas
ellos/ellas/ustedesgustaban
nosotrosgustábamos
vosotrosgustabais

preterite

él/ella/ustedgustó
yogusté
túgustaste
ellos/ellas/ustedesgustaron
nosotrosgustamos
vosotrosgustasteis

subjunctive

present

él/ella/ustedguste
yoguste
túgustes
ellos/ellas/ustedesgusten
nosotrosgustemos
vosotrosgustéis

imperfect

él/ella/ustedgustara/gustase
yogustara/gustase
túgustaras/gustases
ellos/ellas/ustedesgustaran/gustasen
nosotrosgustáramos/gustásemos
vosotrosgustarais/gustaseis
View All Tenses & Moods →

🔀 Commonly Confused With

Translate to Spanish

Words that translate to "gustar" in Spanish:

to enjoy→to like→to taste→

🗣️ Practice in a Tongue Twister

✏️ Quick Practice

Quick Quiz: gustar

Question 1 of 2

Which Spanish sentence correctly translates 'I like apples'?

📚 More Resources

👥 Word Family▼
gusto(taste, pleasure) — Noun
gustoso/a(tasty, pleasant) — Adjective
degustar(to taste, to savor) — Verb
🎵 Rhymes▼
📚 Etymology▼

Comes from the Latin verb *gustāre*, which originally meant 'to taste' or 'to sample.' Over time, its meaning shifted in Spanish to mean 'to cause pleasure' or 'to be pleasing,' leading to its unique grammatical structure today.

First recorded: 10th century

Cognates (Related words)

Italian: gustareFrench: goûter

💡 Master Spanish

Take your Spanish to the next level. Read 200+ illustrated and narrated Spanish stories tailored to your level with the Inklingo app!

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does 'gustar' seem to work backwards compared to 'to like' in English?

It's because 'gustar' literally means 'to be pleasing to.' So, instead of saying 'I like coffee,' Spanish says, 'Coffee is pleasing to me.' This is why the verb form changes based on the thing you like, not the person.

If I want to say 'We liked the food yesterday,' how do I use the past tense?

You use the preterite tense, which describes a single completed action. Since 'food' is singular, you would say: 'Nos gustó la comida ayer.' (The food was pleasing to us yesterday.)